Sustainability
As an established company with a history of more than one hundred years at the Stolberg site, we understand sustainability as a form of our ecological and economic actions that should ensure comparable or better living conditions for present and future generations. Just as the founders and former employees have led our company into the present and handed it over to us.
Our recent history in particular, which saw our site severely damaged by flooding on an unprecedented scale in 2021, has taught us that we must all do our utmost, together, to prevent such events from occurring in the future.
With this in mind, we are committed to sustainable corporate governance based on the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the UN Global Compact and have defined the following areas of action for ourselves:
Supply chain and procurement
When selecting our suppliers, we take sustainable business practices into account. We work with suppliers who agree to our Code of Conduct or who take comparable business practices into account. This applies in particular to suppliers from areas outside the European Union.
To avoid unnecessary travelling, we use local service providers wherever possible. We also endeavour to consolidate freight and avoid partial loads when purchasing raw materials.
Social responsibility
We are a member of the Gesamtmetall employers’ association and are committed to collective bargaining. We also assume corresponding responsibility for employees who are not covered by collective agreements. For us, social responsibility also means ensuring health and safety in the workplace. Preventing accidents at work is our top priority. In the event of incidents, the causes are always investigated with the aim of preventing similar incidents in the future
We promote diversity and integration. We employ people from 17 countries at our site and respect their customs. We also employ colleagues with disabilities.
Our occupational safety management system is certified in accordance with ISO 45001.
Product development and design
The cables and compounds we manufacture are characterised by a particularly long service life. Some of the data cables we manufacture have been installed in buildings for more than 40 years and still fulfil the necessary properties today. Our aim is to ensure that our data cables also fulfil future requirements. We therefore exceed the specified standards so that future requirements for data networks are also met. As a manufacturer, we provide our data systems with a 25-year system guarantee because we are convinced of the durability of our products.
At the same time, we optimise our cables in the course of product development and strive to permanently reduce the consumption of resources without compromising on quality. Wherever possible, we use sustainable raw materials.
Transparency and reporting
Our communication is honest and conscientious. This also applies to our product declarations and our financial communication. We are building up our sustainability reporting. We will report appropriately on targets and their achievement, progress and setbacks.
We fulfil all legal reporting requirements. We make a clear distinction between facts and assessments.
Innovation and technical solutions
Our products and production processes are constantly scrutinised for improvements in terms of sustainability.
Environmental impact and energy consumption are an integral part of our investment decisions.
Raising employee awareness of sustainability
We encourage our employees to get involved in sustainability. We regularly report on individual aspects in our internal communications.
As part of the company suggestion scheme, every employee can also suggest improvements in the area of sustainability. Employees receive bonuses for implementing their suggestions.
In addition to financial targets, we also agree sustainability targets with employees who are involved in the company’s success.
As part of our car policy, we want to convert our company car fleet to sustainable drive systems. We also support initiatives at the site that contribute to more sustainable travel to work. To avoid travelling, we offer opportunities to work from home.
Compliance with all relevant environmental and social regulations
Compliance with all legal requirements is an elementary component of our sustainable corporate management.
We endeavour to anticipate developments in standards and take them into account in our processes.
This also applies to regulations that are not applicable to us depending on our size. For activities outside Germany, we also take local regulations into account.